Blog posts

A warm hello to all of my readers! Thank you for sharing some time with me on my newest blog. I was honored when Laura invited me to be a part of her work and thrilled to be able to connect with all of you. I hope you will find not only important information in my posts, but some humor and humanness too!

It’s the most sugar-ful time of the year – with the cookies and candy, the hot cocoa and marshmallows, the pies, cakes and sweet rolls… it’s a wonder that we don’t all go to bed with visions of tummy aches and cavities.

A recent blog post in the New York Times titled “Giving a Child Permission to Be Miserable” was very thought provoking and applicable to my work as a music therapist. KJ Dell’antonia writes about how “it’s hard to be with a child who’s suffering”. While I agree wholeheartedly with that statement, I also believe it is even more difficult to be with a child who is suffering and cannot tell you what is wrong.

With the end of my first semester of college upon me, my inbox has begun to rapidly fill with small reminders of my impending financial aid. My nightmare resurfaces twice a year, each time stealing a little piece of my sanity as I try to navigate through the mountains of forms. A scramble for the cash, if you will, in my opinion is the worst part of attending a university.

A few weeks ago, I presented to a group of people who were interested in providing music to individuals as a means to provide relaxation, sensory input, and quality of life. As a music therapist, I showed them examples of some music experiences that could fulfill those requirements, but was answered with some questioning looks. “I am not a trained musician,” one of the group members said to me. “How would I be able to do something like what you just showed us without training?”

In my last post, I discussed my experiences in meeting and mirroring a child’s emotions during music therapy sessions. It can be so difficult for adults, be they parent or therapist, to be with a child who is suffering intensely, especially if they cannot express those emotions in words.

As a Holistic Health Care provider to families, I have noticed such a tremendous increase in the number of health complaints children experience these days. Chronic ear infections, allergies, skin problems like eczema, and behavioral problems are all too common today. While these can be complicated health problems, most if not all of these problems begin with what your child is or is not eating.

Before I get too carried away, let me thank you for giving me the opportunity to interact with you via the Internet. To me, interactions and communication endeavors are the most valuable pursuits we, as humans, can share. People are one of my favorite things; we’re complex yet have basic needs, we can sympathize yet also empathize and, most importantly, we may be creatures of habit, but we are also curious about the lives and times of others.

Music can be a stimulant and incredibly arousing for kids – and especially for kids with ADHD. I have worked with several kids with ADHD of all ages recently, and would like to share my ideas for integrating music into the home, to help your child organize and modulate their physical and emotional states.